Oscar Honorees Benjamin Button, Defiance, Revolutionary Road Bound for Blu-ray
By Rachel Cericola
You sat through 18 hours of Oscars ceremony. Now you can actually see something entertaining -- as well as what some of the hype was all about. Paramount just announced that they will soon release three of this year's Oscar contenders on Blu-ray disc.
The first one will be
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, which is coming May 5. Nominated in 13 categories, the drama snagged three Oscars. In case you've been living under a rock, this David Fincher drama stars Brad Pitt as a man who ages backwards. The film also stars Cate Blanchett, Taraji P. Henson, Tilda Swinton and Julia Ormond. The two-disc Criterion Blu-ray will include DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 sound, as well as three hours of interviews and behind-the-scenes footage. A few other highlights include:
- The Curious Birth of Benjamin Button - four-part documentary:
- Academy Award-nominated director David Fincher introduces the surprising beginnings of what would become an epic masterpiece including the casting of Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett, the decision to change the location of the story to New Orleans and more.
- Follow the production from day one including the challenges of aging Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett, designing over five thousand costumes and creating the animatronic baby.
- Explore the incredible visual effects techniques created specifically for the film that allowed Brad Pitt to play the title character at virtually every age. Also includes a visit to the scoring stage with composer Alexandre Desplat.
- Walk the red carpet at the film's premiere in New Orleans, with final thoughts from cast and crew.
- Audio Commentary by director David Fincher
Shortly after,
Defiance and
Revolutionary Road will hit shelves on June 2.
In
Defiance, Daniel Craig drops his James Bond swagger for this true WWII tale. He stars alongside Liev Schreiber and Jamie Bell as three brothers who rally war refugees to help fight. The Blu-ray will highlight the film's lone Best Score Oscar nom, with "Scoring Defiance," a discussion with composer James Newton Howard and violinist Joshua Bell. Aside from that and the Dolby TrueHD 5.1 soundtrack, there are plenty of other highlights -- with many in high-def:
- Commentary by director Edward Zwick
- Defiance: Return to the Forest (HD) - Explores all aspects of production from the early stages of pre-production to shooting on location in Lithuania. Edward Zwick and his creative team discuss some of the challenges and also the rewards of adapting this well-documented historical event into a feature film.
- Bielski Partisan Survivors (HD) - Photo gallery of images taken by Edward Zwick including behind-the-scenes images and surviving members from the Bielski Otriad.
- Children of the Otriad: The Families Speak (HD) - Descendents of the Bielski family tour the film's set and relate the story of the real-life partisans along with efforts to preserve the brothers' legacy.
- Scoring Defiance (HD) - Academy Award-nominated composer James Newton Howard and violinist Joshua Bell discuss the incredible film score for Defiance.
- Theatrical trailers (HD)
Revolutionary Road created huge buzz this year. The Sam Mendes drama teams his real-life wife Kate Winslet with her former
Titanic star Leonardo DiCaprio, as
a duo dealing with married life in the 1950s. The film snagged three Oscar noms, as well as a Golden Globe award for Winslet. The Blu-ray will feature Dolby TrueHD 5.1, with a few HD extras:
- Commentary by director Sam Mendes and screenwriter Justin Haythe
- Lives of Quite Desperation: The Making of Revolutionary Road (HD)
- Deleted Scenes with optional commentary by director Sam Mendes and screenwriter Justin Haythe (HD)
- Richard Yates: The Wages of Truth (HD)
Amazon is currently taking pre-orders for all three Blu-ray titles.
Where to Order:
